Improvement in water-wheels



2 SheetsSheet 1..

W. N. WHIPPLE.

WATER-WHEEL.

No.'174,649. Patented March 14, 1876 fizz/( 227 072 N.PETERS, PHOTO-LITHOGRAPMER, WASHINGTON, D. C.

UNITED-1 STATES;

WILLIAM N. W'HIPPLE, OF MORAVIA, NEW YORK.

IM P-ROVEME'NT IN WATER-WH EELS."

Specification forming part of Letters Patent No. 174,649, dated March 14, 1876 application filed February 9, 1876.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, WILLIAM N. WHIPPLE, of Moravia, in the county of Cayuga and State of New York, have invented a new and valuable Improvement in Water-Wheels; and I do hereby declare that the following is a full, clear, and exact description of the construction and operation of the same, reference being had to the annexed drawings, making a part of this specification, and to the letters and figures of reference marked thereon.

Figure 1 of the drawings is a representation of a horizontal section of my water-wheel. Fig. 2 is a transverse section of the same.

Figs. 3, 4, 5, 6, and 7 are detail views.

This invention relates to certain novel improvements on the construction of center-flow I turbine water-wheels, as will be hereinafter explained and claimed.

The following is a description of my improvements: In the annexed drawings, A designates the vertically adjustable gate which surrounds the wheel-case, and is intended for regulating the supply of water to the wheel. B represents the top of the wheelcase, which is constructed with a central studing-box, B, through which the shaft G of the water-wheel passes. The cap B of this box is constructed with a flange, a, which forms three equidistant receptacles for receiving bearing-blocks a which blocks are adjusted to the shaft G by means of set-screws a By adjusting the set screws the wheel can be made to run perfectly true, and its proper central position in the wheel-case can be maintained.

The top B is bolted upon the top ring of the wheel-case, and made water-tight thereon by means of a flange, b, fitting snugly over an annular rib, b, rising from the inner edge of the said top ring.

The wheel-case consists of two horizontal 'halves, secured together by means of bolts I wheel when the lower edge of the gate A is not above said partition. Each half of the case with its guides is cast entire, and on the upper ring of the upper half of this case are three raised guides, d, which will hold the gate steady when it is raised. The bottom ring of the lower half of the case has an annular groove in its under side, which receives the upper ends of a bridge-tree, E, and, with the aid of bolts, holds this tree rigidly in place. The lower end of the bridge-tree has a socket ing and supporting the-lower concave end of the wheel-shaft G.

The guides D D correspond in number to the number of the buckets in the wheel, and these guides are the arcs of circles beveled at their ends, as shown in the drawings, and arranged so as to direct the water tangentially against the buckets of the wheel.

The wheel has two horizontal tiers of buckets corresponding to the two tiers or guides in the case. The upper tier of buckets g, the top g of the wheel, and the bottom ring 9 are cast entire. Each bucket g is thickest at its outer or receiving end,and presentsa short outer curve and a longer inner reverse curve, as shown in Fig. 1. The ring g has an annuforming which groove are themselves grooved, as shown in Fig. 7. The groove thus formed is intended to receive T-shaped tenon j, which is formed on each one of the lower buck ets h. At one point in the circumference of the ring a portion of the outer flange t is broken away or rather omitted, which allows the tenons on the buckets h to be inserted into their groove. By this novel arrangement all into the groove, are held by the flangest' i. This last bucket is'securedinits place by means of one or more bolt-s, by removing which any one or more of the buckets which may have been broken can be detached from the wheel and new ones substituted in their places. The buckets h are curved in two directionsthat is to say, their upper portions are curved so as to direct the water toward the center of the wheel, while their outer edges and lower portions direct the water both downwardly and centrally. By constructing the buckets h as described, they are acted on by the tan genin it, in which a step, 6, is secured for centerlar groove in its bottom side, the flangest'i the buckets h, except the last one introduced tial currents of the water as well as by the ets by means of T-shaped tenons j, applied in gravity of the inflowin g water. agroove of corresponding shape formed in said What I claim as new, and desire to secure ring, substantially as described. by Letters Patent, is- In testimony that I claim the above I have 1. The case of the wheel, constructed of two hereunto subscribed my name in the presence horizontal guide-sections, connected together of two witnesses.

by the lapping ring which forms the partition WILLIAM NELSON WHIPPLE. P, substantially as described. Witnesses:

2. The lower series of buckets h, connected WM. TALLMAN,

to the bottom ring of the upper series of buck- I JOHN MGOREDIE. 

